I truly believe the Rotorua area is one of NZ’s best kept landscape photography secrets. It wasn’t until I spent a weekend here over Queens Birthday weekend that I began to appreciate just how many fantastic spots there are in this region of NZ.

If walking amongst a giant redwood forest with sunlight filtering through the trees is your thing, Rotorua has it. If standing on a jetty watching the sun rise over a multitude of lakes is your thing, Rotorua is the spot. And if you’re searching out dark skies for astrophotography you certainly will be impressed. And that’s before you even take a walk through any of the thermal areas which are mind-blowing in their boiling madness.

I feel so lucky to have Rotorua only an hour’s drive away – it’s made this whole region so accessible to me that I will even drive over especially for a particular photo shoot. That it’s possible to wake up in my own bed and still get to Lake Tarawera for sunrise is a life goal that I’ve made a reality!

The same can be said of the Tauranga and Mount Maunganui area, where the Mount (or Mauao as it’s known) offers an awesome vantage point for sunrise shots if you can be bothered to huff and puff your way up there before it gets light. There’s also everal stunning waterfalls on the backroads of the region to explore if you’ve had your fill of the beautiful expanse of beach that stretches for miles along the coastline.

Rotorua & Tauranga

Nature images of Rotorua and Tauranga, New Zealand by Meghan Maloney Photography